- Kollam, Kerala, India
- +91 81118 37398
Sooraj K Babu
Julius-Maximilians - Universität Würzburg, Human-Computer-Interaction, Department Member
This paper introduces Pepe Jr, a 4 DOF robotic lamp, designed as a cost-effective platform for Human Robot Interaction research. We discuss the mechanical and electronic design aspects of the robot, and the design of the motion patterns... more
This paper introduces Pepe Jr, a 4 DOF robotic lamp, designed as a cost-effective platform for Human Robot Interaction research. We discuss the mechanical and electronic design aspects of the robot, and the design of the motion patterns associated with each emotion expressed by the robot. We also discuss results from a battery of surveys to gauge user perception of these expressed emotions, which validate the design objectives of the robot.
Research Interests:
We introduce Kappa, an electronic tangible interface development kit designed to promote computational thinking for school students. Kappa enables students to create interactive games, animated stories and musical instruments using... more
We introduce Kappa, an electronic tangible interface development kit designed to promote computational thinking for school students. Kappa enables students to create interactive games, animated stories and musical instruments using physical objects. We discuss the design considerations, the working mechanism and the need for such a toolkit in technology education. We also discuss results and observations from a pilot deployment of the kit in a school in urban India in a project-based learning context.
Research Interests: Computer Science and IEEE
Virtual Reality (VR) technology enables students to be trained in new behaviour in an authentic and situated learning context. The pilot study investigated the effects of a scaffolded five-minutes 360-degree video-based VR training on... more
Virtual Reality (VR) technology enables students to be trained in new behaviour in an authentic and situated learning context. The pilot study investigated the effects of a scaffolded five-minutes 360-degree video-based VR training on communication skills, achievement emotions and motivation among university students in India. The results of an experimental trial with repeated measures show, except for a slight rise in positive emotions for the control group, no significant differences in the VR-condition. Nevertheless, students are highly convinced that VR-training has the potential to improve their academic skills and performance. High acceptance of VR-based education and the potential to replace real education settings at university level were observed.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Technologies for development have great potential in accelerating the socio-economic progress of disadvantaged communities. But these technologies are usually developed by people removed from the daily realities of fieldwork. This paper... more
Technologies for development have great potential in accelerating the socio-economic progress of disadvantaged communities. But these technologies are usually developed by people removed from the daily realities of fieldwork. This paper explores the need and the possibilities of educating rural populations and social workers on the use of technology to create their own digital artifacts. We discuss two workshops, one for villagers in the state of Telangana and the second one for graduate students of a university social work department exploring the use of MIT's Scratch software as a tool for assisting in social interventions. We also discuss the results of an acceptability study among the social work students to gauge the potential for such a tool to be used in the field.
Research Interests:
Immersive learning environments are increasingly being adopted as modern alternative presentation modes in training scenarios. Presently, the improved levels of engagement and interactions offered by these systems are expected to... more
Immersive learning environments are increasingly being adopted as modern alternative presentation modes in training scenarios. Presently, the improved levels of engagement and interactions offered by these systems are expected to potentially motivate the learners more than conventional 2D interfaces. This study compares the effectiveness of immersive environments with conventional 2D learning content for a motorcycle labeling task by evaluating knowledge retention and recall. The study was conducted with two groups of participants: a VR interaction group and a tablet based 2D interaction group. The enhanced spatial interaction capability of VR was hypothesized to promote knowledge retention and improve the instructional utility of immersive learning solutions.
Research Interests:
We introduce “Pepe”, a social robot for encouraging proper handwashing behaviour among children. We discuss the motivation, the robot design and a pilot study conducted at a primary school located in the Western Ghats mountain ranges of... more
We introduce “Pepe”, a social robot for encouraging proper handwashing behaviour among children. We discuss the motivation, the robot design and a pilot study conducted at a primary school located in the Western Ghats mountain ranges of Southern India with a significant presence of indigenous tribes. The study included individual & group interviews with a randomly selected sample of 45 children to gauge their perception of the Pepe robot across various dimensions including gender, animacy & technology acceptance. We also discuss some HRI implications for running user studies with rural children.
Research Interests:
— In the face of technological advancements, serious games are becoming more widely recognized as effective educational tools. This paper presents a serious game that teaches a complex subject in a simplified and easy to understand... more
— In the face of technological advancements, serious games are becoming more widely recognized as effective educational tools. This paper presents a serious game that teaches a complex subject in a simplified and easy to understand manner—Communication and collaboration during post-disaster operations. The game is multiplayer where each player works through a simulated disaster using an incident management systematic framework that highlights the importance of communication and collaboration. To achieve this, we introduce a unique live audio/video communication system where the players interact with each other to solve problems in a realistic scenario. The game also provides basic training for Rapid Damage Assessments and Incident Command System, two strategies used to carry out post disaster management. The game was piloted to a focus group consisting of students and faculty from Amrita University. Results from the surveys showed the game and proposed frameworks were very effective in providing the players with basic knowledge of post disaster management operations. The need of using such training methods is very much necessary since it will help the disaster response activities to be faster and easier.
Research Interests:
—Immersive learning environments are increasingly being adopted as modern alternative presentation modes in training scenarios. Presently, the improved levels of engagement and interactions offered by these systems are expected to... more
—Immersive learning environments are increasingly being adopted as modern alternative presentation modes in training scenarios. Presently, the improved levels of engagement and interactions offered by these systems are expected to potentially motivate the learners more than conventional 2D interfaces. This study compares the effectiveness of immersive environments with conventional 2D learning content for a motorcycle labeling task by evaluating knowledge retention and recall. The study was conducted with two groups of participants: a VR interaction group and a tablet based 2D interaction group. The enhanced spatial interaction capability of VR was hypothesized to promote knowledge retention and improve the instructional utility of immersive learning solutions.
Research Interests:
— In the face of technological advancements, serious games are becoming more widely recognized as effective educational tools. This paper presents a serious game that teaches a complex subject in a simplified and easy to understand... more
— In the face of technological advancements, serious games are becoming more widely recognized as effective educational tools. This paper presents a serious game that teaches a complex subject in a simplified and easy to understand manner—Communication and collaboration during post-disaster operations. The game is multiplayer where each player works through a simulated disaster using an incident management systematic framework that highlights the importance of communication and collaboration. To achieve this, we introduce a unique live audio/video communication system where the players interact with each other to solve problems in a realistic scenario. The game also provides basic training for Rapid Damage Assessments and Incident Command System, two strategies used to carry out post disaster management. The game was piloted to a focus group consisting of students and faculty from Amrita University. Results from the surveys showed the game and proposed frameworks were very effective in providing the players with basic knowledge of post disaster management operations. The need of using such training methods is very much necessary since it will help the disaster response activities to be faster and easier.